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Drying your herbs can be as simple as hanging them from knobs on your cabinets or a quick run in the dehydrator.  I generally just take a bunch of herb and hold them together at the stem ends with rubber bands. I hang them from kitchen cabinet knobs or hooks or anywhere that I think they look nice as they dry.  In just a few days they will be dry and crisp and can easily be crumbled and stored in glass jars.  I also like to reuse my spice jars that I've purchased at  the grocery store.  I have a bulk size plastic jar that I have stored Italian Seasoning in for a couple of years.  Below I will share my recipe for Italian Seasoning that comes from the Mix-A-Meal Cookbook.  It uses garlic powder.  In order to make your own garlic powder you will need to peel and slice your fresh garlic.  I then dry it in the dehydrator for a couple of days until it is crisp.  When I need garlic powder, I blend up the dehydrated garlic slices in the blender until they are a fine powder.  I use this in any recipe calling for Italian Seasoning.



Blessings,
Mrs. P

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Here is picture thought I am sharing...the girls looking at a sunset here on the farm on Grandad's old tractor...a favorite for boys and girls alike.

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We had guests today and I forgot to put the roast in the crock pot so I decided to see what I could do with a roast in a pressure cooker.  I found this recipe and the time it takes to cook is really great for Wednesday nights when we have to leave early for church.  Here it is from Allrecipes.com.  (I did use 2 quarts of water with 8 bullion cubes instead of the amount they used.  I then added the potatoes and carrots (and about a tablespoon of rosemary) after 10 minutes of pressure cooking and returned to pressure for 10 minutes.  The potatoes and carrots were perfect and the meat was very tender.  I then added the cornstarch and some left over corn.  It was a very yummy beef stew.)

Pressure Cooker Beef Stew

Submitted by: MISSCANADA Rated: 4 out of 5 by 14 members

Prep Time: 15 Minutes Cook Time: 20 Minutes

Ready In: 35 Minutes Yields: 8 servings

1 tablespoon vegetable oil 1 small onion, diced 2 pounds cubed beef stew meat 5 carrots, peeled and diced 8 medium baking potatoes,

peeled and cubed 2 cubes beef bouillon 2 cups water 2 teaspoons cornstarch 2 teaspoons salt, or to taste

1.	Heat the oil in the bottom of the pressure cooker over medium-high heat. If your cooker has an insert, remove it and cook directly in the bottom of the pot. Add the onion and beef, and cook until browned on the outside.
2.	Stir in the water, bouillon cubes and carrots, close the lid, and secure the pressure regulator. Heat until you start to hear sizzling, then reduce the heat to medium, and set your timer for 20 minutes. If you have an adjustable pressure regulator, set it for 10 pounds of pressure.
3.	Meanwhile, place the potatoes in a saucepan with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain. This whole process should take about the same amount of time as the rest of the stew.
4.	When the 20 minutes are up, release the pressure from the pot according to the manufacturer's instructions - mine needs to sit under cold running water for 5 minutes until the lid can be released.
5.	Remove the lid, and place the pot over medium heat. Bring to a boil. Stir the cornstarch into a small amount of cold water to make a slurry. Stir this into the stew, and cook for a few minutes. Add the potatoes to the stew, or place them in serving dishes, and ladle the stew over them.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © 2008 Allrecipes.com

Printed from Allrecipes.com 9/10/2008

Blessings,
Mrs. P

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As a home business, I sell handmade soaps and bath products.  It is a nice job for me as it is very seasonal.  I get lots of orders starting now until Christmas.  Then it tapers off and I sell the occasional bar or two of soap until the fall comes again.  This week  I need to make a big batch of soap as I'm just about out of everything.  I do have plenty of lotion bars in stock so I won't have to make those.  This is a recipe for a lotion bar that I make.  Those with dry cracked hands or heels really like it.  I like to put it on my dry heels and then sleep with cotton socks on.  Mr. P has one by his bed for when he is fencing.  Putting in fence really tears his hands up and this is the only thing that helps his hands.  It really is simple to make with only a few ingredients. 

Heavy glass measuring cup
microwave or double boiler
scale to weigh the oils and lotion bars with
plastic dixie cups or plastic molds
*metal tins to store the lotion bar in

1 part Grapeseed Oil (grocery store or Ross or Marshalls)

1 part Shea Butter (possibly a health food store or craft store OR online)

1 part Beeswax (local person who sells honey or craft store)

1/2 t. essential oil (health food store, craft store, online)

 

I shred the beeswax as it will melt faster that way. (Be careful...the beeswax is so hard that it is easy to shred you hand instead....ask me how I know.)  I put all of my ingredients (except the essential oil) into a glass jar in the microwave and cook for 30 seconds at a time until they are all melted.  Then I stir in the essential oil and pour into the dixie cups.  I put a dixie cup on my scales and pour so that each bar is about the same size.  For the tins above that is between 1/2 and 3/4 of an ounce.  You can then pop the dixie cups into the freezer and then they pop right out of the dixie cups.  It takes about 5 minutes or so for them to solidify enough to pop out.  If you just leave them on the counter it may take an hour or so for them to cool, depending on the temperature in your house.  These last for an amazingly long time.  They are also great little gifts for teachers, secret pals, stocking stuffers, etc. 

*note:  if your tins have straight smooth sides, then you can pour directly into them and the lotion bar will slide out once it is cool.  My tins have a tiny groove so I have to mold them in the dixie cups first.

Edited to Add:  I purchased my tins online.  They were on clearance.  There are a number of places online to purchase them.  Also, last year these cost me around 75 cents each to make.  However, I anticipate that they will cost more than that now, as all of the oils I use have had significant price increases since then. If you would like to make a product that is more like lotion, then click on Greenock Farms on the sidebar.  My friend there made a really wonderful all natural lotion and has the recipe on her blog.  I think she calls it deep winter balm or something like that.

Blessings,
Mrs. P

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Here is picture thought I am sharing...can you spot the owls?  I spied him on a cliff overhanging the lake.  Later, when we looked at the photo we realized there was more than one owl. 

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This recipe comes from a Junior League cookbook called Beginnings and Endings.  There are some really great recipes in it and this is one I'd like to share.

Frosted Banana Bars
1 stick of butter
2 c. sugar (I used 1 1/2 c.)
3 eggs
3 medium bananas, mashed
1 t. vanilla extract
2 c. flour (I used whole wheat pastry flour)
1 t. baking soda (I used baking powder on accident)
pinch of salt
cream cheese frosting

Cream butter and sugar together.  Add eggs, banana and vanilla.  Add a mixture of flour, baking soda and salt; mix well.  Spread in a buttered 9 x 13 inch pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.  Frost with cream cheese frosting, if desired.  Yield: 12 servings.

*note:  This is plenty sweet with 11/2 cups of sugar.  Using the larger amount of sugar and frosting the bars will make it fall into the dessert category.


Blessings,
Mrs. P

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Outside at the barn this morning the weather was breezy and cool.  Even though the thermometer reads 74, it felt more like a fall morning.  A crisp cool morning is a welcome site after the heat wave we've had.  I know of course, that it is not fall.  In Texas you really just get a glimpse of fall, a taste of winter, with a dash of spring and an excess of summer.  Because of that, I take all the fall-like days I can and enjoy them thoroughly.  In fact, I had better hurry up and enjoy it because it's already 8:15 and it could easily be 90 degrees in just a few hours.  I'm off to make some banana nut bread and have a cup of coffee on the front porch.  I can't think of a better way to start a day than that.  Unless of course, you consider the fun of being greeted each morning by 30 plus goats running across the pasture toward you like you are Miss America (or a bale of alfalfa hay...either way they love me unconditionally...lol).  And that is not even including the personable jersey milk cow named Elsie, her best horse friend Lacy, a host of other farm animals and 3 sweet smelling farm children that have not yet gotten sweaty and sticky that excitedly greet me each day. Some days life on the farm is really good.  Today is one of those days.


Blessings,
Mrs. P

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Here is picture thought I am sharing...these purple wildflowers grow all over our property rain or drought.  They remind me of petunias.


Blessings,
Mrs. P

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Miss A says that Grandad took this lovely picture on vacation in Colorado last year.  She and Grandad LOVE to take pictures of wildflowers.  I thought I'd share some of the prettiest pictures with you.


Blessings,
Mrs. P

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It's been a busy week here at the farm.  We started the week with 2 visits to the Orthodontist for Mr. P.  Gladly, it was a pleasant experience for him and he's even looking forward to the visit next week.  We'll see how he feels about the orthodontist after that.    In addition to that, I adopted a mother hen and her three chicks.  It seems that she wasn't mean enough to keep the other two chicks she hatched alive at her previous farm.  My friend Tammy knew that I was dying to have a momma hen and chicks so she called knowing that I'd likely take them in.  So the mama hen is living in a sort of chicken tractor with her babies under our kid's fort.  She is happy there, but would much rather have free range of the place.  When her little chicks get big enough I'll let them all run about eating bugs.  For now, it is in their best interest to stay put due to a few barn cats who would love them for a snack.  We also have been visiting India and China this week in school with a few stops at King Arthur's castle and round table and a fun stop to Piano Plus (which just means that we always get more than just piano lessons, usually great fellowship and a good cup of coffee!) at the Nicholson's.  The most exciting thing of the whole week though, was last night.  We visited Harbour Livestock and purchased two breeding doe goats and a buck.  Miss A is thrilled with her new show goats and Daddy is happy with his new buck.  Mr. Harbour was a judge in the past and has literally hundreds of goats and sheep.  He was a wealth of knowledge and very nice too.  We especially enjoyed seeing his 2 year old son "setting up" little whethers like he was showing them in the ring.  I believe that showing is genetic in that family.  OK...so enough chatting...here's the pictures.

Sweet Pea

Another use for a dremmel tool, smoothing a horn that's been blunted off.

Princess (aged doe)

Goliath's Dad (I believe he is not yet two years old)

Our original buck, Mike was from this farm as well and this is what his dad looks like today.  Our Mike looks just like this only VERY DIRTY and STINKY...lol


Well, my dd has run to the barn without me so I have to get off this pc and get to barn chores.  Next week I hope to have bunny photos.  We are shopping for a breeding pair of Mini-Rex's for the rabbit show.  I promise, they are MUCH cuter than goats!

Blessings,
Mrs. P

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I like to keep a few quarts of this in the freezer for quick dinners on busy nights.  I have canned it before in the pressure canner, but I prefer it frozen.  I have thought of canning it without the meat, since the texture and flavor of the meat are what I did not like in the canned variety.

Blessings,
Mrs. P

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For dinner we had shredded barbecue sandwiches since I got a good deal on pork roast.  I made the buns using Marilyn Moll's Fantastic Whole Wheat Roll recipe from the Urban Homemaker website (see sidebar).  Here are some photos of making the buns.

Blessings,
Mrs. P

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Here is a picture of my one lone pumpkin that I grew.  It is a variety called "Cinderella." It is said to be good for carving and making pies.  I let you know how it tastes later after I've enjoyed looking at it for a while.  I just love it's rustic, squashed shape.  Very country, don't you think?  Now if only the vines that are growing will grow a few more "country" pumpkins to decorate my porch in October, I'll be thrilled. 

Blessings,
Mrs. P

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How to Milk a Goat by Hand

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit
Have you ever wanted to milk a goat? Well, it's not as easy as it looks, and it's not the same as milking a cow. But with patience, perseverance, and a willing and lactating participant, you can become the expert goat milker you've always wanted to be!

Steps

1. Prepare the grain and milk bucket. Put the feeder on the milking stand and fill it with the appropriate amount of grain. Refer to the "Things You'll Need" list below.
2. Catch the goat. If she has a collar, you can either hold onto the collar, or clip a leash onto it and lead her.
3. Separate the milking goat from the other goats. Otherwise, the other goats will be extremely curious and interfere somehow, whether it's by stealing her grain, or distracting the milking goat, or munching on your shirt.
4. Lead the goat to the milking stand. If she knows the feed is there, she will put her head through the stanchion. Once she does that, clip it closed. The stanchion should be comfortably loose, but not allow her to slip her head back through once closed. If you get your goat used to the routine, they will easily come up and jump onto the stanchion. No stress involved.
5. Wash down the udder and teats with the sterilized cloth and warm water, wring out cloth and wipe down. This does three things. 1) It obviously removes dirt, loose hair and piece of manure clinging on. 2) the warmth relaxes the goat and helps with milk letdown, 3) udder massage causes the release of oxytocin, triggering milk letdown.
6. Place the bucket on the stand, slightly in front of her udder.
7. Wrap your thumb and forefinger around the base of the teat tightly enough to trap the milk inside the teat.
8. Squeeze with your middle finger, then your ring finger, and then your pinky, in one smooth, successive motion. Remember to keep your grip tight on the base of the teat, or else instead of going into the bucket, the milk will slip right back up into the udder. (NOTE: Milk going back up into the udder might cause infection.) Also, be sure to direct the first squeeze from each teat (which may contain dirt and bacteria) outside the bucket--either on the ground or at a waiting, eager cat (or cat dish...).
9. With some goats you may have to learn to use fewer fingers
10. Relax your grip on the base of the teat to allow milk to refill the teat.
11. Repeat steps 6-8, with one hand on each teat. Alternate, with one teat being squeezed while the other refills. With practice, you will find an efficient rhythm.
12. Stop when you see that there isn't much milk left. The teats will be flaccid, with almost a "deflated" appearance. Massage the udder to release the remaining milk. You should get another 4-8 ounces.
13. Take the bucket away, and put it somewhere that it won't get knocked over by a curious or oblivious goat.
14. Use a teat dip (iodine solution) after you are done milking. This will keep bacteria away from the teats, thereby keeping your goat healthier.
15. Grab the goat's collar (or attach a leash) and unclip the stanchion.
16. Lead her back to her pen, and give her a nice scratch underneath her chin.

Tips

• A goat has one udder and two teats. The teats are what you squeeze to get the milk out of. Many people mistakenly refer to the teats as "udders." An animal with more than one udder is an extraordinary animal indeed.
• Milking out a goat by hand is much more strenuous than milking out a cow, even though a cow has twice as many teats and a lot more milk. That's because a goat's teats are much "tougher." [Some of us question this...] You may need to take a break here and there, or alternate with someone else [Com'on], until your hands build the necessary strength to milk out a goat in one sitting--and it will happen, if you practice daily.
• If the goat lifts her leg in an effort to scrape off your nuisance of a hand on her teat, one way to discourage this is to stop milking but keep your hand on the teat. Keep your hand on it until she puts her hoof back firmly down. This will show her that she can't shake you off that easily.
• Make sure the goat has enough grain to keep her entertained while you milk her. If she runs out, only goats with the calmest temperaments will wait patiently for you to finish. But... do NOT give excess grain to a goat. She will get scours (goat diarrhea). You do NOT want that.
• Don't rely on just your hand strength. A half twist to the teat up near the udder will help seal off the top. Do NOT pull or twist the teat. It causes pain to the goat, and problems for you!
• It is important to wash the udder off before you start milking. This will remove dirt and skin that can flake off the udder into the bucket of milk. The warm water also relaxes the udder and releases the milk.
• If the milk gets low, try massaging the udder for thirty seconds. You will get quite a lot more milk out.

Warnings

• Most,but not all goats kick, and they kick hard. Don't bring your face too close to the bucket, unless you don't mind the risk of getting a tooth knocked out. [In thirty years of goat husbandry, I have NEVER heard of a goat kicking anyone in the face... Kicking in the bucket of milk, yes. Maybe that is just as bad.)
• Never, ever yell at, hit, or otherwise abuse the goat while she's being milked. The key is to make milking a positive experience, one that she will welcome, not dread. A nervous goat is a force to be reckoned with. [Right on.]

Things You'll Need

• Milking stand
• Feeder
• Grain( or plant leaves,grape if you have any)
• Metal bucket
• Collar/lead
• Female goat
• Washing water in which the washing cloth has been boiled. Dilute with equal parts cold water before using.You could also use one of the several brand of sanitary wipes.

Related wikiHows

• How to Bottlefeed Goat Kids
• How to Play With a Piglet
• How to Hatch Turkey Eggs in an Incubator
• How to Find Where Your Hen Lays Eggs
• How to Become a Farmer Without Experience

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Milk a Goat by Hand. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

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The temperature was a nice and cool 75 degrees today so I decided to do a little freezer cooking.  I need to have some cookies made for a 4-H fund raiser next week so it wasn't much work to make a few more cookies to put in the freezer.  I made the cookies in the Bosch. It will handle large recipes of cookies easily.  There is no need to cream the sugar and butter in the Bosch.  Just add the ingredients in the order listed and then turn to speed 1 until combined.  Mix on speed 2 until thoroughly mixed.  That's all there is to have 6 dozen cookies ready to go in the oven.  You may freeze the dough or the cookie.  To freeze the dough, I usually freeze the dough in balls on a cookie sheet.  When they are frozen I put them in a freezer bag and then pull out as many as I want to make at a time. 


6 Dozen Snickerdoodles
Dough Ingredients:
1 c. butter
1 c. shortening
3 c. sugar
4 eggs
1 T. vanilla
5 1/2 c. flour
2 t. baking soda
1 T. + 1 t. cream of tartar
1/2 t. salt
1 t. cinnamon
Roll the above dough into balls and roll into 1/2 c. sugar mixed with 1 T. + 1 t. of cinnamon.  Place on ungreased cookie sheets and bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes or until edges are light and golden.


Spicy Oatmeal Chippers
1 c. butter
1 c. shortening
2 c. packed brown sugar
1 c. sugar
4 eggs
2 t. vanilla
3 c. flour
2t. baking soda
2 t. ground cinnamon
1 t. ground cloves
1 t. salt
6 c. rolled oats
2 c. chocolate chips (raisins may be subbed)
Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes for a chewy cookie and 12 minutes for a crispy cookie.


Blessings,
Mrs. P

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If you only have time to read one blog today, let it be A Happy Home by Keri Mae.  I found it this morning and was encouraged to please the Lord in all that I do, even blogging.  I found her blog to be very pretty and her blog entry on Gadding About was especially convicting as I have spent time on the computer when I have lovely quilt blocks lying around waiting to be sewn and sweet children tugging on my apron strings to go and bake cookies or snuggle up on the couch and read a book.  I think I will likely visit there again to see how the Lord is speaking to Keri Mae and also myself.  Well, my computer time is up so I'm off to enjoy those kids and all things that I love about homesteading.

ETA:  I'm having trouble getting links to work so here is the address of A Happy Home:  www.homesteadblogger.com/KeriMae
The article on Gadding About is on the left side bar

Blessings,
Mrs. P

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If you like to wear skirts, jumpers or dresses on a regular basis then you have probably heard this question.  I probably wear a skirt, dress or jumper 3-4 times a week and sometimes more.  I really like to wear them, because I feel feminine in them.  Also, it makes me feel that my job at home is important.  At least as important as my previous paid teaching job.  (I get paid at my current teaching job in hugs and kisses!)  For that job, I often sewed new clothes for the school year during my summer break or purchased new ones throughout the summer break.  Everyone at work dressed up a bit and we all enjoyed seeing what various teachers were wearing.  Somehow, no one ever asked me why I was dressed up at that job.  It was expected that I would dress in an appropriate and professional manner. 

Years ago when I first started staying home, I attended a weekly ladies Bible class.  There was a lady about my age named Emily.  Each week it seemed that she came to class in a casual skirt.  I always thought how nice and casual she looked. (I didn't think "dressed up" because she wore nicer clothes to church)  Later, I attended a different Bible study and MANY of the women there wore skirts and dresses each week.  I always enjoyed going and started to wear skirts and dresses more often.  After spending some time on Ladies Against Feminism, The Sparrow's Nest, and having real life friends who only wear dresses, I found that I really enjoyed wearing them on a more regular basis.  Today, when I go to the library or grocery store or homeschool co-op (duties of my hugs and kisses job) someone always seems to ask why I'm so "dressed up" (not my good friends, of course).  (Actually, the library & grocery store checker are used to me by now. ) It's as if I'm not allowed to "dress up."  The funny thing is I have dressier clothes that I wear to church.  I guess those same folks would reel over in shock if I showed up in heels and a linen suit at homeschool co-op...lol.  I used to feel bad and say "Oh, it's what I had clean for today."  It was a true remark, but tended to make it sound like I didn't have any jeans or shorts or whatever clean.  The fact is, that I personally find my day goes better if I get up and dress in a way that makes me feel good.  For me that is skirts, jumpers or nice pants.  It is not, my super comfy hiking pants that I wear to the barn for milking.  However comfortable they are, they do not make me feel fresh, feminine and like the Queen of the Castle...err...farmhouse.  They make me feel like I'm headed to a dirty job like mucking out the barn or weeding the garden or taking care of sick goats.  Now, I do those chores regularly, but for my "housework" of schooling, cooking, cleaning, cuddling kids, etc, I prefer to "dress up" if you will.  The benefits are not only that I'm feeling so feminine, but also that if anyone drops by I'm presentable.  Also, I'm ready to go in case of an emergency.  Being dressed nicely encourages me to make my home tidy and neat.  I don't exactly know why, but it does.

Recently, I wore a pioneer dress and bonnet to the library for the Summer Reading program.  I wasn't sure how I would like it.  A friend said, "Oh, I would hate to wear that.  I bet it's all scratchy and hot."  I was suprised at how comfortable it really was.  As for being hot, it wasn't.  The floor length skirt seemed to be nice and cool.  I felt so feminine in that dress.  It had lace on the top and was a pretty blue.  My 10 year old daughter was so jealous.  She said, "I want a dress like that."  The lady who loaned it to me said that her momma just loved to wear it for history lessons and such.  I can see why she liked it so much.  I felt very much like a pioneer princess wearing it.

So if you've read this far you may be concerned that in some legalistic way I'm condemning ladies who aren't "skirt wearers." Saying that in some way "skirt wearing" is more godly.  I am not.  I know very godly women who rarely wear skirts.  I also know godly women who only wear skirts.  Godliness is a matter of the heart, not a matter of dress.  For your house you may find that nice dresses, jumpers and skirts are not your cup of tea.  That's fine, but I find that those folks aren't quizzed on why they are dressed the way they are.  At least I was never asked about it when I was dressed in very casual clothing.  Maybe I'm wrong about this, but it has not been my experience to be quizzed on very casual dress.

My point is just that if you decide that you may like to wear dresses then you may find that others question you on this.  I just find it interesting that I got quizzed for this in my job of staying home and teaching, but not in my previous job of leaving home daily to teach.  Essentially, I still do exactly what I did before.  When I taught public school, I still had to keep house and teach kids to read. The only difference is that I left my house to teach children and someone wrote me a check each month for my teaching services.  It is as if there is some secret dress code that I was unaware of for those who are paid in hugs and kisses rather than a check. 

The joy in being a keeper at home, is that we each have the freedom to decide how to run our own families and homes.  And with that comes the freedom to dress as we please so long as it is modest as the Bible states it must be.  So maybe if you are questioned on it you will remember (as I'm going to) that you have the freedom to dress up as nicely as you desire.  I intend to no longer feel guilty for my choice of clothing when I'm asked this question.  It is my choice, plain and simple.  Some days you'll find me in a skirt and other days you'll find me in jeans or pants.  Maybe if you are of the curious, quizzing type then you will think about how the other person feels before you question their attire.  Think logically about why it is ok for that person to dress up for a paid job and not ok for them to dress up for a job, possibly the exact same job, at home.  Logically, I can see no difference.  

This morning while having my cup of coffee I read an article about "dressing up" at Homeliving Helper which got me on this soapbox of sorts.  (Mrs. Lydia would be "PRO-Dressing Up" if there is such a term...lol) I then clicked on the link in the article and enjoyed reading another article about this very subject.  The author and Mrs. Lydia both have theories on why folks feel compelled to ask "Why are you so dressed up?"  I think there are a number of reasons one could ask this question.  You may enjoy reading further about this issue at the following address (or you may be sick of it after my lengthy babbling...lol).
(I cannot get the link to be a direct click link, sorry) 

Here is the article by Mrs. Lydia Sherman.  It is called First Year Home, and deals with more than just "dressing up."  I really enjoy her writing.
 

OK...off my soap box and off to get dressed for the day in my favorite skirt.  Maybe my next soap box will be the comments I get when I wear a hat to church!  Oh aren't those fun Sundays! 

Blessings,
Mrs. P

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Blessings,
Mrs. P

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Saturday, I picked up some seeds for a fall garden.  I chose some spinach, lettuce, carrots, turnips, swiss chard, squash, and beets.  The summer garden still has my pumpkins, some peppers and tomatoes in it, but other than that there is lots of room for my new seeds.  I'll have to water a lot as we are in desperate need of rain.  We have soaker hoses that work well for the garden.

I hope to put a row of veggies in the garden in the morning when I go and check on my Cinderella Pumpkin.  It was yellow, but today it has turned a lovely shade of orange.  I'm not sure how large this variety gets and so I'm trying to decide when it should be picked.  I've never grown this variety before and I don't have the seed package that tells what the final size should be.  Hopefully, I'll find some other small pumpkins when I weed the pumpkin patch tomorrow.  The children had the job of catching the cucumber beetles and dropping them into a mason jar with soapy water.  They think it's fun to catch them (or at least they did the first day...I'll see how they like it again tomorrow when they realize there are still lots of bugs left.).

Due to the hot temps I won't attempt to plant the lettuce and spinach until it cools down.  I read in a gardening book that the lettuce and spinach seeds will not germinate in temps over 76 degrees so that means that it will be a while before I can plant them.  I'll be glad to do that as I really hate buying salad greens when they are so easy to grow in season.  I think I'll look into growing lettuce and spinach inside the house for next summer.  Please comment if you have any thoughts on that or when to pick my pumpkin.

Blessings,
Mrs. P

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